Outdoor events by political parties banned

Straits Times
sgwatchDOG wonders which is the law that bans outdoor events, so that the actual text can be studied...

Aug 28, 2007
Outdoor events by political parties banned
A PERMIT application by the Workers' Party (WP) to hold a cycling event for its 50th anniversary was rejected because political parties are banned from organising outdoor activities.

This is a longstanding position, as outdoor gatherings by parties have the potential to cause a public disturbance, said Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee yesterday.

He was responding to Non-Constituency MP Sylvia Lim, who wanted to know why the WP could not get a police permit for a mass cycling event at East Coast Park.

Said Associate Professor Ho: 'The East Coast Park is a recreational park for Singaporeans and their families. It is not meant to be used by a political party to promote its cause.

'Apart from displacing the usual recreational users...it is an open area where there is greater potential for breach of the peace, public disorder and unruly behaviour.'

He said that police required political events to be held indoors or in stadiums where problems could be contained, adding that the WP could consider these venues. The policy applied to all political parties, he said.

To another question from Ms Lim, he said that even if the organisers were well behaved, others there might still cause problems.

To laughter, he added: 'Maybe cycle around the stadium.'

Then, WP MP Low Thia Khiang (Hougang) rose to ask why political events in public places were deemed to cause disturbances.

He also asked if Prof Ho considered cycling in a stadium a reasonable suggestion, and if the minister could designate a part of East Coast Park for sports by parties, just as Hong Lim Park became designated Speakers' Corner. Just before he sat down, Mr Low remarked: 'Cycling at Hong Lim Park? Don't tell me that, ah.'

To the first question, Prof Ho retorted: 'If you listened very carefully Mr Low, I don't know whether his hearing aid is with him because he wears one, I said there is a greater potential for law and order (problems).

'You may be well-behaving, but there may be other people whom you come across when you cycle who may stop you, may want to debate with you and that may attract a crowd, and therefore will result in problems the police want to avoid.'

JEREMY AU YONG

Money

sgwatchDOG kicks off the newly merged blog with a new section on Money. Issues like banking and insurance will be discussed here.

Instead of having multiple posts, and tying them together with tags, sgwatchDOG will try out a different approach, by using one blog post for each topic, updating that post with new info as and when needed.

One of the first big transactions that a person undertakes is opening a bank account. So it is must be quite humbling to note that protection of such accounts in case of a bank going bankrupt has only been implemented very recently.

The Singapore Deposit Insurance Corporation (SDIC) pays you money when the bank goes bust.

From the SDIC website,
"In the event a Scheme member bank or finance company fails, all of your eligible accounts with that member are aggregated and insured up to S$20,000, net of your liabilities to the member."

Inquiries Bill

070031.pdf (application/pdf Object)
Another interesting bit of information from the eGazette website. It seems this new Bill, if passed into law, will repeal the Commissions of Inquiry Act. Wonder what major changes are being made, such that amendments could not be made to the existing Act, but could only be done with an entirely new Act...

8 consumer rights

From a Consumers International webpage...

1. The right to satisfaction of basic needs - To have access to basic, essential goods and services: adequate food, clothing, shelter, health care, education, public utilities, water and sanitation.
2. The right to safety - To be protected against products, production processes and services which are hazardous to health or life.
3. The right to be informed - To be given the facts needed to make an informed choice, and to be protected against dishonest or misleading advertising and labelling.
4. The right to choose - To be able to select from a range of products and services, offered at competitive prices with an assurance of satisfactory quality.
5. The right to be heard - To have consumer interests represented in the making and execution of government policy, and in the development of products and services.
6. The right to redress - To receive a fair settlement of just claims, including compensation for misrepresentation, shoddy goods or unsatisfactory services.
7. The right to consumer education - To acquire knowledge and skills needed to make informed, confident choices about goods and services, while being aware of basic consumer rights and responsibilities and how to act on them.
8. The right to a healthy environment - To live and work in an environment which is non-threatening to the well-being of present and future generations.

mouse print* and MythBusters

2 great concepts, one online, the other on TV. mouse print* reveals the truth behind the fine print. MythBusters conduct cool experiments to test various myths from past to present.

Dr Money had an article, which touched on fine print also recently.

Moose with wind are worse than gas guzzlers - Times Online

Times Online
How do we choose between saving the earth and protecting animals? Perhaps we should take it one step at a time... The news article claims that a moose contributes in 1 year, an equivalent of driving a motorcar for 13,000km. So, to ascertain if moose are a more serious problem than cars in Norway, we need info like the number of moose in Norway (120,000), the number of cars in Norway (?), the distance travelled by cars in Norway (?).

Moose with wind are worse than gas guzzlers
Roger Boyes in Berlin

They are dubbed the “Kings of the Forest” and are regarded by Norwegians as their national symbol.

Now, though, scientists have claimed that because of their burping and farting, the placid moose is an eco killer. During a single year, according to new research, a full-grown moose expels – from both ends – the methane equivalent of 2,100kg of carbon dioxide emissions. That is said to be as destructive for the atmosphere as the emissions released by 13,000km (8,000 miles) of car travel.

“To put it into perspective, the return flight from Oslo to Santiago in Chile leaves a carbon footprint of 880 kilos,” said the biologist Reidar Andersen, a biologist. “Shoot a moose and you have saved the equivalent of two long-haul flights.” The findings, from the technical university in Trondheim, place Scandinavians in a dilemma. Many are dedicated winter season tourists to Asian destinations such as Bali and Thailand. Is shooting moose about to become a fashionable way of easing their troubled envi-ronmental consciences? Researchers in Scotland and Wales have been examining how the feeding of dairy cows could be changed to cut back their gaseous belching. No such work has been possible, however, on the 120,000 wild moose in Norway.

Already, though, climate change is alleged to have so altered their eating habits that they are involved in an en-vironmentally vicious circle of increasing gas emissions. It began when snows started to recede in Norway. “Moose normally eat branches in the winter, a not particularly nutritious diet,” said Erling Solberg, of the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research. “But since snow has become so much rarer they have access to wild blueberries.”

The result has been fatter moose that are more likely to break wind. Moreover, better-fed, the moose have started to reproduce more quickly and herds are swelling.

Last winter there were reports of moose straying into towns in search of food – eating Christmas decorations and even smashing shop windows to reach displayed vegetables.

Norwegians are therefore pleading for higher hunt quotas to keep moose numbers down and the gas emissions under control. The hunting season begins on September 25 and the authorities have allowed a kill-quota of 35,000.

“Think of it this way,” said Professor Andersen, who hunts moose as well as researching them. “Remove a moose from the world and you have saved the equivalent of 36 flights between Oslo and Trondheim.”

The Kyoto protocol counts a tonne of expelled methane as the equivalent of 21 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

80 million metric tons of methane produced annually by ruminant livestock worldwide

Source: EPA

Interesting parts of the Telecom Competition Code (TCC)

sgwatchDOG just found out that the TCC requires licensees (e.g. M1, Singnet, Starhub) to reveal how many complaints they receive. See below for the full text of the relevant section.

3.2.7 Service Quality Information Disclosure Requirements

(a) Licensees must make publicly available, in a format
that can be understood easily by End Users, a report
indicating the number and type of complaints that the
Licensee has received from its End Users and a
statement as to the extent to which the Licensee has
met all applicable quality of service standards issued by
IDA.

(b) The Licensee must update this information at least
once each year. The Licensee may satisfy the obligation
to make this information publicly available by posting
the information on its website.

SingTel's entry
M1's entry
Starhub's entry

Concluding comments of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women: Singapore

Advance Unedited Version (PDF)
The concluding comments from the CEDAW committee are out...

Cartoon heroes and villains

Kids' food | Food industry tricks
sgwatchDOG has always found it difficult to see why some of the consumer organisations are so concerned about food advertisements targeted at children. It's time to find proper scientific documents to see the correlation between these ads and their effects on children. sgwatchDOG is quite sure that someone has already done that, but it needs a bit of searching. In the meantime, you can read the Which? report on this issue.

Unregulated online pharmacies pose drug risk

Which?
Like other email users on the earth, sgwatchDOG receives tonnes of spam on online drugs. For people who are adventurous enough to try these sources out, a word of caution from MarkMonitor, via a Which? news article.

13th ASEAN Summit website

Home
News that the draft ASEAN Charter will not be circulated publicly before the Summit in November has been discouraging, to say the least. sgwatchDOG will be lobbying for the draft to be released for public comments before its signing.

New Consumer

The UK's hottest ethical lifestyle magazine
Interesting consumer/ethical living magazine.

Citizens Advice Bureau

Citizens Advice corporate website - Home

Product recall: Nokia BL-5C battery

Product Advisory

Unfair Contracts

CHOICE

Court Dispute Resolution

Non-Party L.G.M. LIMITED (SINGAPORE BRANCH)	MOEY & YUEN MOEY CHIN WOON MICHAEL
Defendant ORIONS BELT NETWORK PTE LTD	SURIAN & PARTNERS SIDAMBARAM UTHAYASURIAN
Plaintiff CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION OF SINGAPORE	SOBHRAJ TAY LOW SUBRA & TEO LOW WAN KWONG

From the Subordinate Courts website

Women & The Economy - Ethical Consumption

UNPAC
Although the article is targeted at women, the consumer advice is nonetheless still relevant. Do think of the concerns before making your next purchase.

Blogger Help : How can I create expandable post summaries?

Blogger Help : How can I create expandable post summaries?
Useful for shortening the long posts in this blog, will try it out soon.

Employment

(Work in progress...blog post to be published gradually...)

The Employment Act is the main piece of legislation in Singapore for labour issues. Some of the useful information for employees...

• (3) The notice to terminate the service of a person who is employed under a contract of service shall be not less than —
• (a) one day’s notice if he has been so employed for less than 26 weeks;
• (b) one week’s notice if he has been so employed for 26 weeks or more but less than 2 years;
• (c) 2 week’s notice if he has been so employed for 2 years or more but less than 5 years; and
• (d) 4 weeks’ notice if he has been so employed for 5 years or more.

NLB eResources

Available on the National Library Board (NLB) website. (access to documents requires login via a NLB Digital Library account, which is free)

There is also a new eSearch & Browse beta applications, which makes finding information much easier, as it allows searching across all eDatabases.

Consumer policy review
from 01/01/1994 to present in ABI/INFORM Complete and ProQuest 5000 International

Consumer reports
from 01/01/1991 to 3 months ago in Academic Search Premier, Business Source Complete, MAS Ultra - Public Library Edition and MasterFILE Premier

Journal of consumer policy
from 01/12/1977 to present in Springer Online Journals Complete

Guides to help you get something done

BBC - Action Network
Great resource toolkit for newbies like sgwatchDOG.

Trafficking in Human Beings

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
Features a toolkit to combat trafficking in persons...

WOMEN’S ANTI-DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE COMMENDS SINGAPORE ON PROGRESS, BUT PRESSES IT TO WITHDRAW RESERVATIONS TO CONVENTION, STRENGTHEN DOMESTIC LEGAL

CEDAW press release
Initial info on the discussions on Singapore's 3rd report is out.